


Shield Your Heart

by Dibsanddabs



Series: ThorBruceWeek2019 [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: AU: The team all live in the tower, Comfort, Grief/Mourning, M/M, Post-Avengers (2012), ThorBruce Week 2019
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-10
Updated: 2019-11-10
Packaged: 2021-01-26 22:50:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,206
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21381904
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dibsanddabs/pseuds/Dibsanddabs
Summary: ThorBruce Week, Day Two: Armour // Warmth“I could bring something for later. Or just some coffee.” He listened carefully for a response, but instead he heard shuffling, the sound of bed sheets and curtains, before the door slowly opened. The room was stuffy, a little messy, but nothing seemed particularly worrying. Definitely not an accidental hulk out.“I could do coffee.” Bruce said.-Bruce hasn't been seen by the team all day, so Thor goes to make sure he's okay.
Relationships: Bruce Banner & Thor, Bruce Banner/Thor
Series: ThorBruceWeek2019 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1540546
Comments: 12
Kudos: 45
Collections: Thorbruce Week 2019





	Shield Your Heart

**Author's Note:**

> It's day two!
> 
> Comments and kudos greatly appreciated!

Thor was the first to notice that something was off. Bruce often kept to himself, so the others didn’t find it unusual that they each hadn’t seen him around that day. That he hadn’t responded to messages or even appeared to get food all morning. But Thor couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off, especially after checking and realising that no one had seen him at all.

So Thor headed along to Bruce’s rooms. He knocked gently on the door, waiting a moment before speaking through the door. 

“Bruce? I was wondering if you wanted any lunch.” It was an excuse, but a reasonable one. Bruce had to eat after all. It was a moment before he heard a response called back. 

“No thanks.” The voice was hoarse. Thor waited for a moment to see if he’d say anything else, give any reason or ask him to leave. When nothing came he spoke again. 

“I could bring something for later. Or just some coffee.” He listened carefully for a response, but instead he heard shuffling, the sound of bed sheets and curtains, before the door slowly opened. The room was stuffy, a little messy, but nothing seemed particularly worrying. Definitely not an accidental hulk out. 

“I could do coffee.” Bruce said, his voice a little clogged, as if he’d just woken up. He was in pyjamas, his hair messy. He moved away from the door, letting Thor in before locking it behind them. He walked over to his kitchen counter, starting to set up the coffee machine. 

“You’re often an early riser.” Thor commented, trying not to make it sound like an accusation. Bruce shrugged a little, setting the coffee machine running and leaving it to filter. “I was wondering if you were sick.” 

“I’m fine.” Bruce replied, leaning against the counter and watching and Thor made himself comfortable on the couch. They spent a lot of time together here, Thor didn’t need to stand on ceremony any more. Their relationship had grown past that.

“Have you been asleep all morning?” Thor asked. 

“No,” Bruce said, running a hand through his hair before crossing his arms over his chest. “I woke up. I just… stayed in bed.” 

Thor nodded slightly, the quiet hanging between them for a moment before Bruce moved to find mugs. 

“Did something happen?” Thor asked carefully. 

“Lots of things happen all the time, you’ll have to be more specific.” Bruce replied, his back to Thor as he started to pour the coffee out for each of them. He moved over to the couch, sitting at the opposite end to Thor. 

“Bruce.” Thor said, his voice gentle. He’d set the coffee down as soon as Bruce had given it to him, and he turned to peak to him face on. “You can talk to me. Clearly something is wrong.” 

“Nothing’s wrong.” Bruce said, but even he must have realised he didn’t sound convincing. He stayed facing forward with his eyes down, pointedly not looking at Thor. “It’s just-… It’s nothing. Nothing you need to worry about.” 

“I never need to worry about you.” Thor said. “You’re very capable, and functionally indestructible. But that doesn’t mean I don’t, because I care very deeply about you.” 

Bruce looked over at that, his brow furrowed slightly in a way that meant Thor could almost see his thoughts forming. 

“It’s a difficult day.” He said eventually, picking up his coffee and swallowing down as much as he could in one mouthful. Thor only nodded a little, not letting his gaze falter. “Today, it’s-… got a lot of memories.” 

“Do you want to talk about them?” Thor asked, barely getting the question out before Bruce cut him off. 

“No. I don’t.” He said, not firmly but still decisively. “No offense Thor, but there are some things I don’t talk about.” 

Instead of pressing it, Thor moved closer, his coffee forgotten. He slowly wrapped an arm around Bruce, giving him plenty of time to pull away if he didn’t want the contact. He gently pulled him into an embrace, resting his head against Bruce’s. He felt Bruce’s hesitance, a tension in him that didn’t want to melt away quite yet. 

“You don’t have to talk about anything.” Thor whispered, using one hand to rub the tense spot on the back of Bruce’s neck. “But you also don’t need to be strong beyond your limits. Not around me. You wear a thick armour, my love, you’ve shielded your heart. You have my word that I will be here if you ever wish to open it.” He placed a soft kiss on Bruce’s head. 

He felt the uncertain stress slowly ease out of Bruce’s shoulders, felt him slowly lean against him. Bruce’s hands came up to rest against Thor’s arm, holding on gently. He turned slightly to rest his forehead on Thor’s shoulder. Thor cradled him there for a slow moment, giving him the stability and comfort he needed. He wasn’t speaking, but it was the most vulnerable Thor had seen Bruce in all their time together. He barely heard Bruce when he spoke, his words came out so quietly. 

“It’s the anniversary of the day my mom died.” He breathed. “I… I miss her. Especially this year, being back in the country.” He went quiet again, letting several slow breaths pass before adding. “I still don’t want to talk about it.” 

Thor nodded ever so slightly. It wasn’t his place to pry after all, and Bruce needed to open up in his own time if he was going to do it at all. He felt one of Bruce’s arms wrap around his waist, pressing them closer. 

“I can stay for as long as you need.” Thor said softly, feeling only a small nod against his shoulder in response. “Do you want to go back to bed? We can close the curtains, stay there for a while.” 

“Yeah.” Bruce said softly, starting to sit up a little more to pull away from Thor and look him in the eye. “I am sort of hungry though.” He added. 

“I can retrieve food for us, and let the others know that we will not be available for the day.” Thor gently cupped Bruce’s cheek, stroking a thumb gently along his cheekbone. “We can stay here as long as you want. Or I can leave if you’d prefer to be alone.” 

Bruce let out a slow breath, leaning into the hand for a moment. 

“No, I’d like it if you stayed.” Bruce said softly. Thor gave him a small smile before leaning in to kiss his cheek softly. That managed to get the smallest hint of a smile from Bruce, and in this moment Thor did not hope for any more. 

“Then return to bed, and I’ll return to you as quickly as I can.” Thor said, beginning to stand up. Bruce caught his hand, stopping him as he tried to step away. 

“Thank you.” He said softly. “For… this.” Thor smiled, his gaze soft and his chest felt full and warm. “I’m not used to opening up to people.” 

“I know.” Thor replied. “But I will be here, any time you wish to try. You do not need your armour with me.”


End file.
